Honda City VX completes 10 years & 2.3L km: Few major ownership points

I am now looking at the Innova Hycross / Invicto twins, as well as the BYD Atto 3 as a replacement.

BHPian themonster recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I am a long-time lurker here and have not posted in ages. Just wanted to update you regarding my Honda City 2014 Model, manual VX petrol i-VTEC (top end at that time). I got my car from the first batch of petrol Citys in March 2014, it's almost 10 years and I have clocked a little over 2,30,000 km.

Major Points:

• The engine still runs smoothly. I would say, maybe power may have reduced by ~10%.
• The Stock Battery was changed within the first 2 years of ownership. Was Amaron and put a 4-year warranty Amaron battery.
• The Stock tyres/tires, Goodyears were changed a little over 31,000kms to Bridgestone Turanza AR60 195/60 R15. (Will post more about tyres in the 4th gen City Tyre thread, as I am on my 4th set of tyres now)
• ABS Module issue cropped up at 1,05,000kms around 2017-2018 (3 years of ownership). Since the car was out of extended warranty and at the time, Honda did not offer Anytime warranty for cars over 1,00,000kms. Paid from my pocket, later on found out this was a common issue in the first batch of 2014 Citys (both petrol and diesel)
• There was a ringing noise in the engine bay from the start of ownership, it was posted by many members at the time. It was resolved after the change of the Alternator Belt (Serpentine Belt) along with the Auto pretensioner pulley. Done around 1,15,000 km.
• The 2nd battery lasted for exactly 4 years, and died about a month or two post the warranty, in 2019. This happened at night, around 8 pm and everything was closed except for the SF-Sonic dealer (now SF Batteries, blue colour). The Team-BHP SF-Sonic factory visit report had just come around that time, so went with it.
• The Changed Clutch plate is around 1,55,000kms. The car’s mileage had dropped significantly, and power had reduced.

Apart from tyres and batteries, all the above were done at Honda ASC.

• Got the Steering rack rebuilt and not replaced around 1,62,000 km.
• Changed Suspension (shocks and springs) at around 1,75,000 km. While the ride on good roads was alright, it was terrible on concrete and rough roads. The car’s ground clearance had reduced too. Everything was sorted after the suspension change.
• The SF-Sonic battery had a failed cell, just one month shy of the 2-year warranty expiring. Had gotten the battery replaced under Warranty. This was in 2021. This battery is on its last legs now (end of 2023), and will most probably require a change in the coming months.
• Around 1,95,000kms, the car had a constant jerk while accelerating, felt in all gears after driving for about 30-50kms, especially felt in 1st, 2nd and 3rd gears. Was diagnosed to be a faulty ignition coil. 2 of the coils were bad, but decided to change all 4 with spark plugs. (Honda ASC charges about 6000rs each, and my FNG charged me Rs 2000 each).
• Around the 2,00,000 km mark, there was a check engine light. No change in engine power or performance was felt and even mileage was intact. The Green ECO rings around the instrument cluster remained Blue, that’s all. Worst of all, it used to come and go. Diagnostics revealed a P0420 error code, which stands for low catalytic converter efficiency. Honda ASC charges about 12000-15000rs for the part and my FNG told me it would be 3500rs. I was planning to change the part but got held up by other things in life. Saw a ChrisFix video one day; figured I had a multimeter with me, and just had to buy a WD40 sensor cleaner. Tried it and voila, it was fixed!
• Around 2,15,000 km, there was a perceivable difference in the way the engine ran, it was rough, power build-up took time and it just didn’t feel right. Gave my car to another FNG, and they changed the timing chain and clutch plate, after which the car was back to normal.
• The driveshaft boot had been replaced multiple times, mostly from outside, as the Honda ASC had told me they replaced the boot along with the drive shaft for the affected side. For reference, the driveshaft is close to Rs.15,000/- for one side, while just a change in the boot is around 2000-3000 including labour.
• There are multiple drain ports for water around the car. The ports in the door, which are towards the bottom front, usually get blocked with dirt/mud. This leads to the accumulation of water in the door sills, which can overflow into the cabin. Another point of water entry into the car is the sunroof drain ports, which can get blocked with the silicon lubricant and dirt mixture. One would have to manually clean the drain using a nylon wire with/without soap and water. The water can soak the headliner, followed by the cabin floor.
• I did use a K&N filter for some time (for reference part no. 33-3030). While the drivability had improved, the car needed much more frequent oil changes and the throttle body got gunked up with oil/dirt mixture. Also, it is time-consuming to clean the filter.
• Also, I did get the front leather seats redone around the 1,75,000 km mark. My build is on the heavier side and that could be seen on the seats.
• I got the clutch master cylinder and the clutch slave cylinder serviced at around 2,25,000 km. The clutch pedal used to get hard after driving 50 or more kms, especially in the ghats with the frequent gear changes. My left knee used to hurt.
• I have not included the numerous engine oil changes, manual transmission fluid changes, brake pad changes, and other items of wear and tear.
• At present, the car is running fine as I enter into the 10th year of ownership; but I am looking for a replacement, as my monthly running is on the higher side and older folk in the family are having difficulties getting in and out. At present looking at either the Hycross/Invicto twins in their hybrid systems or an electric car such as the BYD Atto 3, but these are thoughts for another thread.

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